A halloween story by honiejar
by kkalinowski
Summary: A halloween story by honiejar


CHAPTER ONE: COSTUME TIME October had rolled in and eventually it had become Halloween in a matter of weeks, a day of celebration and excitement for many. Haru was excited for this day for a good reason: a break from the mundane life of being a puppeteer and time to be himself was allowed. The academy had freed them from days of training and since attending he wanted to show his newly partnered automaton, Hikari, the life outside of rigorous training and competition to strive for the top. To Haru, he felt that she needed to be able to understand the joys of life when shouldering the burdens of being a battle automaton. Since meeting his fated automaton he wanted to allow her a piece of life that he always had that she herself never got to experience due to her recent creation. Though to him personally, she was now a living being who had a purpose despite her creation stemmed from magic and technology. However, to the public, she would always be a combat machine that was sustained by puppeteers such as himself. An imbalanced matrimony that would always have a struggle on who leads and who followed. With both of them in his room, he prepared his costume and her own for their busy night. He made sure that everything was ready much to her confusion. Hikari could watch her puppeteer do unusual things, however, she dare not go against him since she believed he knew what he was doing. He dressed as a badly put-together vampire with fake blood all over his face and tacky dollar store vampire-teeth but it was good nonetheless. It made him feel like he was able to enjoy his youth without having to stress over being at the top of life. His gaze was initially directed towards his mirror that showcased his ridiculous look, a proud smile graced his face at the work he was able to achieve in less than an hour. Turning towards his automaton, his arms spread wide to look at her with an eager look. "How do I look, Hikari?" The automaton looked him with her usual deadpan expression, the corner of her lips curved downward slightly. That was the only sign of any emotion from her, a slight displeasure that she would squander. Confusion finally peaked through and onto her expression as she looked at him with perpetual concern, their relationship had always been strictly the loyalty between a puppeteer and their automaton. She was unsure what answer to express based on her role as his combative tool. "Haru, you look like the banned dolls who crave to eat meat.." Although she meant no ill-will her words were never short of the truth, after all, that is was how she was programmed to be or perhaps this was the desired personality she wanted to express for Haru. She remembered the rare banned dolls who ate meat to sustain themselves, creatures who craved more than they were given. "Fair enough." He laughed at her quirky response which only added to the confusion on her face since she did not think her answer could be taken as a joke. He could not wait for her to experience this joy as well, for she needed it. He beckoned her with his hand towards to him without having to speak. She got up, the command was unsaid and she would always listen. She approached him and stopped only a few inches away. He grabbed a bag that contained her own ridiculous costume: a bat costume. "If I am dressed as a vampire would it not appropriate to be dressed as a bat?" The smug expression on his face was clear to anyone watching that he felt this was the smartest idea he had as of yet. But if anyone else had to offer an opinion they would say it was tacky, to say the least. The only answer that was given to him was a sigh from her but she grabbed the paper bag without much of a fight and entered the conjoining bathroom in his dorm room. Minutes later she exited and wore the ridiculous outfit of a black bodysuit and bat wings at the back with her wearing huge bat earpieces. She looked ridiculous and Haru knew it would only escalate as he would give her more accessories to emphasize that she was a bat which she would not yet. Hikari looked down at herself with uncertainty clouded her usually deadpan eyes, her fingers picked at the bodysuit as if it did not match her at all. "Haru, I will be honest this seems weird to me…" "It only gets better, Hikari. Come here, I'll put these on for you!" He expressed excitedly and did not take her opinion in the matter seriously, his eyes reflected the childish youth that he had yet to outgrow. Puppeteer or not, he was a child at heart. She approached him and stood still as he inserted fake vampire teeth into her mouth and then began to apply blood around her lower portion of her face liberally. The mirth that twinkled in his eyes was enough for Hikari to know that she looked as weird as her puppeteer but she would play along. After all, she never got to celebrate this event since her creation. Her life had always been to train, serve and rest. She wanted to be able to experience the same joy as her puppeteer to be of better use to him and to understand what he cherished to make more perfected choices for him. He steered her towards the mirror and she saw how ridiculous she looked but laughter had escaped her. Funny if not endearing to look at, the perfect match to her puppeteer. "What do you think?" "I look as weird as you!" There was no malice in her tone and he reached out to muse her hair a little bit. Her face scrunching up slightly but it was not out of hate, she enjoyed the small bit of affection he showed her. She felt closer to him by playing along with his request. They were now ready to enter the night to partake in trick or treating together, after all, that was the simplest form of celebrating Halloween. CHAPTER TWO: SPOOKY NIGHT The two had ventured outside, leaving the dorm room to partake in trick or treating. Haru was unable to buy the pumpkin buckets that were necessary, usually used to collect the treats but for now, empty pillowcases would do. Darkness had blanketed the streets as they left the campus, only dimly lit by the street lights and the houses that offered some lighting. Other puppeteers wandered around as well and some had their automaton tagging along with them, which meant that Haru was not the only one who wanted to enjoy this time with their automaton. However, because they were newly partnered together, Hikari was not used to these types of outings. She was built for combat and protection, never for the fun or enjoyments that most of their human counterparts took part in. She was not completely clueless on how to act but she felt her protection for her puppeteer still on overdrive rather than being able to enjoy their time out. She would try to fix that. "What exactly is trick-or-treating?" Hikari asked curiously to ease her own tension, usually, she kept her questions to herself but she made note that this seemed to be a widely celebrated day. People were dressed in elaborate costumes and seemed to be carrying bags or buckets that were filled with an unknown substance. She kept close to her puppeteer not wanting to get lost in the busy crowds that passed by left and right. Fascination twinkled in her eyes as she watched with awe, as they walked it was not only the costumes that grabbed her attention but the houses that were decorated to fit the holiday. Covered in mock cobwebs, lights, pumpkins and so much more. "One of the things you can do during Halloween! A fun little event where we go knock door to door and ask for a treat… or perhaps receive a trick instead." Haru jeered at her slightly, his eyebrows wiggling slightly as if to imply that there would be more involved than a simple trick. He offered her a free arm for her to hold onto as she was quietly trying to keep up. She listened to his answer and grabbed his arm with her free hand, fingers gently clung to the fabric of his tattered coat. "Will the tricks harm you?" Concern was painted on her face and lathered in her voice after she had toyed with the last part of his answer in her head. She would protect him, after all, she was alive because of him and no tricks would come in the way between them. This earned her a boisterous laughter from him, her innocence was pure and endearing. This was the most fun he had with her in a long while. "There's never tricks… well sometimes. Here, let's go to this house!" He pointed towards one of the houses that were covered in cobwebs and tombstones. Whoever the owner was clearly enjoyed the scary season by making the front of his house to match. There was even a scarecrow that was placed next to the door surrounded by jack-o-lanterns, which made this house look more fun and festive. They both treaded their way carefully to the front door, he nudged Hikari towards the front to knock. Wanting for her to experience the fun first hand rather than hiding behind him as she usually did. KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK! Her knock was barely heard from the outside but it was powerful enough to be heard from the inside. Hikari looked around as a few seconds had ticked by and no answer, while she looked around she had yet to notice from that the scarecrow that was resting by the side had suddenly got up. She noticed too late, the scarecrow lunged in a jerky way and made a horrific grow. This sudden appearance made her yelp in surprise as she jumped from where she was standing. For a second she considered to attack, deeming this creature a threat but the sound of Haru's' laughter made her realize this was the 'trick' he fondly spoke of. "Haru…" Her cheeks puffed out as her lips protruded into a sulky pout but she ended up giggling as well since the scarecrow revealed themselves to be a much old man who lived in this house. Their real face was harmless and any fear or threat she originally felt a while ago had dissipated to the harmless fun that Haru had tried to instill in her. "So I'm guessing this is the trick? That's just mean... This is my first time trick-or-treating!" She exclaimed with a small smile on her usually expressionless face. "Oh, I just knew this house would be good to spook you. Thanks, Mr. Scarecrow." Haru flashed a charming smile to the stranger who only chuckled in response to their banter. Haru and Hikari were about to leave seeing as there was not much else to say, thinking this was a house was only a place to receive trick but much to their surprise the Scarecrow reached over to one of the jack-o-lanterns. Originally, it looked empty but it actually contained candy inside it to which the Scarecrow gave a handful to both Haru and Hikari. "Thank you!" They both said in unison before departing off to the next house. She looked in her bag and saw an assortment of candies or as Haru said 'treats'. They were some she recognized and other's she had no idea what they were. In the end, she knew she would give them to Haru for she had no use for them. All she needed in life was Haru's mana and that was enough to sustain her when she would become injured. They continued to walk off to the next house and she felt excited from this simple thing they were doing, oddly enough she felt more than just an automaton to him. She felt alive. "After we visit a few houses we can go check one of the parties that one of my friends from the academy is holding but make sure to stick with me, okay?" Haru's words had drawn Hikari back into the present and although he flashed her a gentle smile there was something she noted. The concern that was not able to be completely erased from his tone and gaze. Although he was a childish person a part of him would always be the puppeteer she had come to respect since her awakening which was the fact he genuinely cared for her well-being despite the fact she could be healed by his mana. "Is something the matter, Haru?" She queried curiously and from the look on his face, it was actually a serious matter which brought her guard up slightly. Her gaze did a quick sweep left and right to see if there was anyone listening but there was no one which helped settle the nerves that had built up. Her gazed focused back on her puppeteer, awaiting his answer. Haru was unable to sway from her gaze so he could only tell her the truth that he himself did not want to say outloud. It made the situation all the more serious. "There actually has been... A killer out there killing puppeteers and their automatons. It might be a banned doll but no one is sure." Haru whispered which made Hikaru cling to his arm even tighter and he reached over to muse her hair again to relax her. "Don't worry, I'm a vampire and you're my bat. As long as you stick near me we'll be fine. Okay?" She had no choice but to accept his answer so she nodded. The tense atmosphere that was shared between them eventually disappeared into the darkness as they went back to their easy-going selves. For the next couple of hours, they would savour this experience of trick-or-treating. Which was fun on both parts because it wasn't just sweet treats but there were plenty of tricks which continuously made Hikari jump in sudden surprise. The night was still young and they were having endless fun but little did they know there was more to come despite all the childish fun planned out. CHAPTER THREE: PARTY TIME After they had finished a few rounds of trick-or-treating the duo had eventually reached their final destination: the house party. Both Haru and Hikari entered and saw people they both knew. Rivals and friends alike. They both said their greetings and set their things aside to enjoy the atmosphere. Haru was excited that he was able to continue to shower her more than he turned towards her and looked at her with high expectations. They needed to let loose and actually enjoy themselves. "I'll grab a couple drinks! Come." They both weaved towards the drinks table, to which he grabbed one for himself and one for her. For Hikari's, he embued plenty of mana. After all, she was not human and would not get drunk off alcohol but with a huge amount of mana, she would act like he would when he drank. He handed her the mana embued drink and drank his alcohol drink, both of them enjoying it and that happened a few times before they felt buzzed. They both ended up dancing after awhile, talking with their fellow classmates and rivals although it might have been slurred. Eventually, they had left the house to sit outside in the streets to enjoy the moonlight that sparkled brightly in the darkness. Although Hikari did not react like Haru had with everything did this outing was not a disappointment for him. Instead it exceeded his expectations. She was able to express more emotions than she usually had and even a few smiles and laughs were earned through this ordeal. "Did you enjoy tonight?" He questioned her and she looked up at him, some of the fake-blood had smeared away to showcase more of his happy expression. Although she tagged along originally to learn about him to make better choices as his automaton what she came out with was an appreciation for this day. "I did." And those words carried the weight of their loyalty towards one another, dwelling in comfortable silence until they heard a horrific scream. Filled with pain and brutal fear. It surprised them both, their moment of peace had been cut short but that meant nothing. As a pair who fought for justice, they both got up and ran to the source of the scream. They ran and ran until they reached a few streets down where some people were already starting to form. They inched closer, after all, they were more respected as a puppeteer and automaton who fought for the world. Both peered and saw it was one of their own comrades ravaged apart and her automaton ripped apart, her insides taken. It was a horrific scene that looked like a murder and if anything one would believe it was probably by a banned doll but the two of them noted something that neither said out loud. They crouched by the corpses and saw evident claw marks and beast-like bite gashes, as well as fur under the fingernails of both the corpses. These small clues gave a hint that Haru had heard about the recent murders that were circulating, everyone was quick to blame banned dolls but between the higher-ups, in the academy, it might be something far more feral and unknown to them: a werewolf. But the answer was unsure and they'd have to leave this decision to those who were more skilled in this field. Little did the two know the whole time they were being watched and followed by the one who had committed the murder, in the distance where trees and the darkness could hide his appearance. Fur blended in with the darkness and only gleaming yellow eyes sparkled. He had marked his prey for his next hunt.


End file.
